MEN'S VOLLEYBALL: LBSU's Crabb is national player of year

Taylor Crabb doesn't think of himself as the kind of volleyball player who wins MVP awards.

The college volleyball world does.

The Long Beach State junior was named American Volleyball Coaches Association Player of the Year for 2013 on Wednesday at the group's banquet in Los Angeles.

The 6-0, 150-pound Crabb had a sensational season from his outside hitter position that kept him on the court throughout games and demanded as much attention to defense and passing as scoring.

He had 502 kills for the season, averaging 4.18 per set (third in the nation) with a .353 hitting percentage (eighth in the nation) to go with 23 service aces, a .922 service percentage, 72 blocks and 209 digs (1.74 a set). He had just 15 reception errors in 506 attempts.

To put his numbers into perspective, all of the other players in the top 10 in hitting rate were 6-5 or taller, and all of the players ranked ahead of him in kills per set were middle blockers.

"To be honest, I was actually shocked," Crabb said Wednesday. "I never thought of myself as the type of player who wins player of the year awards. Player of the year winners are usually the most dominant or powerful, and I don't think I'm that kind of player.

"I've always looked as my role as that of a team player. It's very surprising."

The coaches who voted took that into account. Crabb is as valuable to the 49ers for his defense - receiving in the back row, joining blocks in the front row - as his offense. Very few outside hitters have Crabb's blend of talents and statistic.

"Taylor has been an exceptional player for a long time, going back to youth volleyball and high school," 49ers head coach Alan Knipe said. "The challenge for this season was to be more efficient in his game, especially hitting.

"You could tell early in the season that he was a better player and he really continued to get better all season. I'm happy that other people took notice."

Crabb and the 49ers went 24-8 this season, the program's best record since the 2004 team went 28-7. They tied for second in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation, advanced to the MPSF tournament final for the first time since 2006 and were ranked No. 2 in the last AVCA poll.

The 49ers lost to BYU in the MPSF final and the one at-large bid to this week's Final Four went to UC Irvine, the team the 49ers beat in the MPSF semifinals but lost to three times during the regular season.

Crabb is the first 49er to be named player of the year since Paul Lotman in 2008.

"I have no regrets about our season because of how far we've come," said Crabb, who was named an AVCA All-American last week. "I'm proud of all my teammates. We all had to make changes and sacrifices and we all stepped up.

"We're all excited to see how far we came in one year, and excited to see how much more we can do next season. This season doesn't mean anything about where this team is headed."

The 49ers lose just one starter for 2014 and will return Crabb, first-team All-American setter Connor Olbright (fourth nationally in assists per game, 10.86) and middle blocker Taylor Gregory, who led the nation in blocks (156) and blocks per game (1.47) as a redshirt freshman.

Outside hitter Dalton Ammerman, opposite Ian Satterfield and libero Andrew Sato also return in 2014, as well as six other players who played well in limited roles.

Crabb, a native of Punahou, Hawaii, will start training next week with the U.S. national team that will play in the Pan Am Cup on May 19-26 in Mexico.